More than a million people have signed a petition against a law reintroducing a pesticide

This will be the first time that the French National Assembly has debated a citizens’ initiative petition.

National Assembly President Yaël Braun-Pivet said on public radio France Info on Sunday that she supported holding such a debate, but stressed that “under no circumstances can we back down from the law that has already been passed,” which she said would “save a significant number of farmers.”

The petition, launched by a 23-year-old master’s student on July 10 on the website of the lower house of parliament, the National Assembly, had more than 1.3 million signatures by Monday. This option for petitions has been available in France on the Chamber of Deputies website since 2019, with the aim of strengthening participatory democracy.

The petition calls for the repeal of the law adopted on 8 July which provides for the exceptional and conditional reintroduction of the neonicotinoid pesticide acetamiprid, banned in France but authorised elsewhere in Europe until 2033.

Previous studies have shown that this substance can have adverse sublethal effects on a number of organisms, including pollinators and natural predators of agricultural pests. That is, it does not directly kill the animals, but indirectly reduces the success of individuals (and their colonies) by altering their physiology or behaviour. According to the researchers, its effects on humans are also “a cause for concern”.

According to the student who initiated the petition – who describes himself as a “future environmental health professional” – the law is a “scientific, ethical, environmental and health aberration”. Marine Tondelier, leader of the Greens, has asked parliament to reconsider the proposal, as President Emmanuel Macron – who has not yet signed the text – could do, which would delay the law’s promulgation.